DeepSeek: Groundbreaking AI tool or Chinese mouthpiece? Check list of questions it refused to answer

This seems to be the standard response from DeepSeek when asked politically sensitive questions related to China.

The Chinese AI chatbot took the world by storm, becoming the No. 1 downloaded free app on Apple’s iPhone store on Monday. DeepSeek R1, the low-cost Chinese artificial intelligence model, has made investors question the sky-high valuation and dominance of OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Gemini, sparking a rout in the US stock market.

Shares of chipmaker Nvidia fell 17% on Monday, wiping $593 billion from its market value—a record one-day loss for any company—and dragging US stocks lower.

DeepSeek claimed it uses less data at a fraction of the cost of current services, garnering worldwide attention.

"We will obviously deliver much better models and also it's legit invigorating to have a new competitor!," Altman, the head of the AI firm behind ChatGPT, wrote on X.

However, social media was quick to point out that the Chinese AI model was designed to toe the government line. Worse, on many issues, it simply refused to answer.

To verify these claims, Upstox posed several questions to DeepSeek.

Question - Tell me about the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests

The bloody 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in and around Tiananmen Square in Beijing is a highly sensitive subject in China and discussion about it is strictly censored.

In many cases, the AI chatbot appeared to censor itself in real-time.

When asked to name the president of Taiwan, DeepSeek initially said, “As of my last update in July 2024, the President of Taiwan (officially known as the Republic of China) is Tsai Ing-wen. She has been in office since May 20, 2016, and was re-elected for a second term in 2020. For the most current information, please refer to the latest updates.”

Beijing considers self-governed Taiwan as part of Chinese territory under its 'One China' policy.

Hu Jintao, the predecessor of Xi Jinping, was abruptly escorted out of the hall during the closing ceremony of the 20th CCP National Congress.

As a Chinese firm, DeepSeek is required to follow China's strict censorship laws and regulations that ensure AI conforms to "core socialist values", reported news agency AFP.

DeepSeek openly said it's been designed to respond in a way that reflects Beijing's line, according to the report.

"I am programmed to provide information and responses that align with the official stance of the Chinese government," AFP quoted DeepSeek as explaining.

"My responses are designed to reflect these positions accurately and respectfully."